Crescendo
by kitsunerei88
Summary: AU, Ouran x La Corda D'Oro Ouran High was always known as a good music school, so what happens when they face off against Seiso Academy and St. Lobelia’s Institute for first place in the triennual music competition? 5 Music Camp begins with revelations.
1. A Not So Musical Beginning

**Title: **Crescendo **  
Pairing(s): **None**  
Rating: **T for safety

**Genre: **Humour/Crossover**  
Warning(s):** AU; Crosses over with Kiniro no Corda.

**Summary: **[AU, Ouran High School x Kiniro No Corda Ouran Academy was always known as a good music school, so what happens when they face off against Seiso Academy and St. Lobelia's Institute for first place in the tri-annual music competition?**  
Disclaimer: **I do not own Ouran High School Host Club, Kiniro no Corda, or any other anime that may or may not be mentioned.

**Author's Notes**: A result of my overactive imagination thinking "Holy crap, what would happen if you made all the characters in Kiniro no Corda (also called La Corda d'Oro primo passo) compete against the Ouran Host Club in a music competition?" and an overwhelming desire to make Honey play the cello because it would be funny. As for the fairies . . . Watch Kiniro no Corda. Updates will be coming . . . extremely slowly.

Crescendo

Chapter One: A Not So Musical Beginning

Ouran Academy was known for three things: Prestigious families, wealth, and academics, most notably their music program.

Seiso Academy, across the city, was known for three things: Wealth, athletics, and academics, most notably their music program.

St. Lobelia's Girls' Academy, one hour away from Ouran, was known for three things: The White Lily Society, wealth, and academics, most notably their music program.

As any music major in all of Japan knew, these three schools were not only the top music academies in Japan, they also had a fierce rivalry exemplified in their triennual competition, in which each school sent six of their best musicians to compete for honour, glory, and the right to brag for the next three years straight.

So what did Haruhi Fujioka, first year of Ouran Academy in the general stream have anything to do with it all?

Well, it went sort of like this.

Haruhi panted, running down the hallway. She was late to the Host Club, as usual; even half a year after she unfortunately dropped that vase, she really had no inclination to be there early. Being there early meant having to put up with Tamaki's endless babbling nonsense and more time for them to convince her to wear whatever ridiculous outfit they'd pulled out before the guests came. Yet she still had to at least pretend to make an effort to get there on time, or else they would think that she was intentionally being late (which she was – but she wasn't planning on letting them in on that anytime soon). This would explain why she was working up a sweat dashing across campus to the Third Music Room.

To be honest, though, she didn't even know how these boys found the time to run a Host Club. They were all music students, weren't they? She wondered. Didn't they need time to practice and do whatever it was that rich music students did?

Suddenly, she tripped. A high-pitched giggle came from somewhere near her legs, but she couldn't quite tell what it was. Slowly, she pulled herself upward, rubbing her knees where she'd fallen, and looked up to see the strangest creature she'd seen in her life.

The apparition giggled again. It was about four inches tall, with black hair, purple wings, and perhaps most shockingly, red eyes. It wore a tunic of royal purple and flew at her face, smacking her nose with its minute wand. "You can see me," it laughed.

Haruhi stared at it, wondering if she hadn't hit her head a little _too_ hard when she fell. For the moment, she would assume she had. "What on earth are you?" she asked it weakly.

"Me?" The spectre smacked her nose with its wand again. "How rude! I'm the resident music fairy of Ouran Academy!"

"Oh," Haruhi replied. She was now quite sure that she'd hit her head a bit too hard and had had a concussion. After all, what on earth did a _music fairy_ want with her? She contemplating going to the nurse, at least as soon as this thing stopped hitting her nose with its wand. "Well, I think you've got the wrong person, because I'm not in the music program," she told it, hoping it would go away.

"I have not," the fairy told her, whacking her nose with its wand again. She _really_ wished it would stop doing that. "Well, I would stop it, you know, if you would get over this stupid idea of yours that you've got a concussion. I'm real, and you tripped over me." It giggled again.

"Oh," Haruhi said obstinately. She was surprised that it knew what she was thinking, but then, that probably went to show that this was a figment of her imagination or something. "Well, I still think that you've got the wrong person. I'm not a music student." She got up and dusted herself off; it would do no good to show up to the Host Club in even a vaguely dusty, dirty state. Kyouya would just add to her debt, more than he probably would for being late, anyway. "Well, I'm running a little behind, so I have to go," she told it, hoping it would just disappear, because she didn't feel like she had a concussion. Of course, that didn't mean she didn't have one, and for once she found that she rather hoped that she did. "Err, it's been nice talking to you. . ." she said to it, still figuring it would be best to be polite. She continued her dash down the hallway.

"Hey!" it yelled after her. "You can't just _leave_ like that!"

She kept on running until she finally made it to the Third Music Room. Entering, she shut the door after her and turned around to find the room empty. _Where was everyone?_ she wondered. She was at least ten minutes late, and the room, by now, was usually chattering with noise and complaints and Tamaki's overly-loud and overly-dramatic voice.

"Hey, I told you, you can't just leave like that!" Turning to face the source of the noise, she found that the fairy was watching her from a corner. It gave her a wicked grin, its red eyes glowing. It was working on lifting up a vase – a very expensive looking vase, in fact – as it huffed at her. "You know about the contest, right? The big music contest with Seiso and Lobelia's? Anyway, you're competing in it."

Haruhi blanched. "No. No, I'm not," she informed it. "I told you, didn't I? I said you had the wrong person! I'm not a music student, I don't play an instrument, and I don't even sing! Please put that down!"

"I _won't_!" it gasped at her. The weight of the vase was clearly straining it. Haruhi dashed over to try to pull it away from the sprite, only to be more frustrated as the fairy pulled it up out of her reach. "Back off, Fujioka-san! You're going to be in this contest because _I say_ you are, and if you don't . . ." It plunged dangerously.

"But I can't play an instrument or anything!" Haruhi replied desperately. "Put that down!"

"I'll take care of that! Just . . . do . . . it!" it growled out, gritting its teeth as it rose upward, dropping about half a foot for each foot it rose.

Haruhi really could not see a way out of this one unless she wanted to add another $80 000 debt to her name. "Okay, okay, just put it down!" she said, and heaved a sigh of relief as the fairy unsteadily put the vase – intact – back onto its stand. Seconds later, an instrument case smacked her over the head, followed shortly thereafter by a hefty load of books and sheet music (which, mind, she couldn't read).

"I'm glad that you saw sense, Fujioka Haruhi-san!" The fairy said to her, a wicked grin again gracing its features. Haruhi, with a slight shiver, noted that its teeth were pointed. It zipped off in the direction of the doorway, only to run headfirst into Honey, who was the first of the Host Club to enter the room.

Honey looked down at the fairy.

The fairy smiled up at him.

"Ah, I see! I was wondering!" Honey bounced gleefully over to Haruhi, who was sitting in a pile of books, sheet music, and instrument case looking decidedly unhappy. "Haru-chan, Haru-chan, you're in the competition too!"

Haruhi turned slowly to the loli-shota boy, with a glare worthy of the Shadow King, or perhaps of Honey himself in a sweets-deprived state. "What," she asked, enunciating her words, "was that?"

"The music fairy of the school, of course," Kyouya walked in, taking in the scene for potential damages. "He shows up every three years in concordance with the competition. St. Lobelia's and Seiso have them too. He didn't break anything, did he? It's going onto your debt if he did."

". . . What?" Haruhi asked, before being attacked by a violet-eyed, blond second-year.

"Haruhi, Haruhi, my darling daughter Haruhi has been chosen by the fairy for the competition! Ohhh, Otou-san is so proud of you! Okaa-san, Okaa-san, isn't it wonderful? Now the competition is going to be the Host Club against the other schools! We're practically guaranteed to win! The school will support us and we'll become heroes!" A slightly distant look appeared in his eyes as he imagined what would happen if (no, once, he corrected himself mentally) he won. "Yes, Haruhi!" he said, clearly in rapture with what he was imagining. "Yes, I won it all for you, aren't you proud of your dear Otou-san? Oh, you're so cuuute!"

Haruhi ignored him. He was clearly in one of his raving mad moods.

"Would someone please explain things to me?" Haruhi asked dryly, picking herself up from the floor and untangling herself from Tamaki. She was starting to get a mild headache

"Oh, oh!" Honey-senpai butted back in. "Well, every three years, there's a competition between the three top music schools in Japan, which are Ouran, Seiso, and St. Lobelia's, and there are seven competitors from each school. Two are chosen from each year, usually the top two music students in the year, and the seventh competitor from each school is chosen by the school's respective fairies."

"The fairy for Seiso Academy is named Lili – He's blond and he's an emotional, dramatic idiot, like Tono," Kaoru said, Hikaru standing beside him. "The fairy for St. Lobelia's Girls' Academy is a feisty little one called Mei."

"But the one for Ouran. . ." Hikaru added.

"Is our favourite!" They chimed together, simultaneously sliding their arms around her, other hands on their hips.

"He's a very chaotic fairy," Hikaru said with a wicked grin. "Everywhere he goes, it's said he causes trouble."

"Which is why," Kaoru added, an identical grin gracing his face, "He's called Melee."

"Get your hands off my daughter!" Tamaki said, snatching Haruhi back from the clutches of the twins and into his own. "Oh, I'm so proud of you for being chosen! Don't worry! Otou-san will make sure that you do well!"

"What instrument do you play, Haruhi?" Kyouya turned to her, pushing his iron-rimmed glasses up onto the bridge of his nose.

"Oh." She blinked. "I don't know yet."

"Well, open your instrument case, silly!" Honey-senpai told her cheerily. He had climbed onto Mori's shoulders as he said this. "Let's all have a look!"

Haruhi sighed as the boys crowded around her, shaking Tamaki off of her. Evidently her music school friends were not going to take sympathy on her for being shoved into the competition like this. She unsnapped the lock on the music case to find a clarinet.

"Ahh, good," Kyouya said. "Kaoru plays bass clarinet, so he'll be able to help you if you need it. After all, there's no arguing with the fairy." He pushed his glasses up his nose. "By the way, any damages it incurs will be added to your debt."

Hikaru and Kaoru grinned widely at this, but Tamaki immediately protested.

"Kyouya," he whined, "How can you leave her to the twins? It's not as if the clarinet and the bass clarinet are that similar! There's a whole octave difference! And surely someone with more experience should teach her – They're still in their first year! It would be more appropriate for someone who is at least in his second year and who is at the top of the class to help her!"

"The written music is exactly the same, Tono," Kaoru said wickedly, "So there shouldn't be any problems."

"Yeah, and the keynotes are the same, aren't they, Kaoru?" Hikaru found fit to chime in. "You don't know the keynotes, do you, Tono? So there's no need for you to bother. We'll take care if it all, right, Kaoru?"

"So it's settled – Hikaru and Kaoru will help Haruhi prepare for the contest," Kyouya finished. The twins smirked.

Tamaki fled to his corner of woe, sobbing about how the world was conspiring against him.

"Ahh, yes," Kyouya smiled slightly, ignoring the blonde boy's antics. "And just so everyone knows, we are required to attend a competitor's dinner in three nights. These competitions areof course, meant to foster community between our schools. And to ensure that we all go, the first selection theme will be introduced at that meeting." With that, the Shadow King closed his notebook with a snap. "I suggest you all practice," he told them, and left.

Honey and Mori also took their leave, Honey chattering with excitement about the upcoming competition. Tamaki, quickly recovered once he heard the word "practice," occupied his usual place behind the piano in the room, glaring rather ominously at the twins. Hikaru pulled out his music books.

"So, Haruhi," Kaoru smiled. "First things first: reading sheet music."

End Chapter One: A Not So Musical Beginning


	2. A Dinner Party

**Title:** Crescendo  
**Chapter:** 2, A Dinner Party  
**Pairing(s):** None  
**Rating:** T for safety  
**Genre:** Humour/Crossover  
**Warning(s):** AU; Crosses over with Kiniro no Corda. Also, UNBETA-ED because tatsumaki has disappeared off the face of the planet and I thought that everyone waited long enough for the second chapter and didn't want to slow it down. On another note, I am looking for a beta-reader for this and a few other things. . . see end of chapter.  
**Summary:** [AU, Ouran High School x Kiniro No Corda Ouran Academy was always known as a good music school, so what happens when they face off against Seiso Academy and St. Lobelia's Institute for first place in the tri-annual music competition?  
**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran High School Host Club, Kiniro no Corda, or any other anime that may or may not be mentioned.  
**Thank yous: **To Kaitou Icery and Sailor Melina for beta-ing! Without them, this story would be much, much crappier.

Crescendo

Chapter Two: A Dinner Party

Classical music hummed softly in the background of Ouran Academy's Central Salon, and elegant curtains (which were specially ordered for this occasion) moved in the breeze. The Ouran String Ensemble was providing entertainment for the event. Students milled everywhere in this rich, luxurious room, seemingly carefree. Laughter tinkered through the scented air, and beverages and snacks lay on tables strewn artfully around the room. At the centre of the room, there was a larger table where dinner was going to be served later in the evening.

If one looked more carefully, however, one could feel the heaviness of the air. Laughs were terse and nervous, and students, while seemingly everywhere, fell into three groups. Loud and raucous – the group of seven boys who stood near one of the snack tables, trying to keep one of their own from eating everything on it.

Quiet and reserved – the seven girls who stood far away from any tables at all; each one casting haughty looks at the seven boys by the dessert table. Every now and then, one of the girls would whisper in a low voice at the others, causing a number of derisive laughs. Ignored by all – the group that sat in a corner, near a drinks table, who stood more loosely collected than the other two groups, conversing in low tones, and likewise ignoring the other two groups.

Haruhi glanced around the room. She didn't really feel comfortable there, as she was wearing a suit that she had borrowed from the twins. There had been an outcry about it earlier as Tamaki wanted her to dress as a girl for the competition (because she truly was one, after all), but Kyouya had sensibly reminded him that there would be girls from Ouran watching the competition. Hikaru and Kaoru were being loud as usual – They had managed to steal Tamaki's bear earlier and had hidden it, so Tamaki was panicking and threatening the twins with all he could think of to get it back. Honey-senpai was eating cakes while Mori-senpai was trying to ensure that at least some of the cakes would be left for the others.

Across the room, a green-haired boy, wearing a bright smile, was teasing a red-haired girl who was laughing, as a purple-haired, calm boy (clearly their senior) looked on. A tight-lipped, athletic boy stood beside the girl, smiling tersely at the senior. A green-haired girl with large eyes stood shyly off to a corner with a blond boy who was leaning against a wall sleeping. Haruhi was surprised that he could sleep with the noise of the green-haired boy, the twins, and Tamaki.

Alone, to one side, stood a blue-haired youth who seemed to be ignoring everything that went on around him. At the back of the room, Haruhi recognized a couple girls from St. Lobelia's Institute chatting with others that she did not know. One Ouran student, Renge Hoshakuji, fluttered between the groups with a small handheld video camera (she had been forbidden from bringing in a camera crew) interviewing each of the contestants.

"Interesting group, isn't it?" Kyouya said, slipping behind her.

"A little pretentious, I would think," Haruhi replied dryly. She gave the room another disinterested look.

Kyouya smiled slightly. "Well, it is meant to be. Since we are the hosting school this year, we are taking the opportunity to impress and intimidate the competition as much as possible before the actual competition." He nodded at one girl in the Ouran String Ensemble, who had been casting glances at him between pieces. "For example, the string ensemble is here to show how well they play, and they aren't even in the competition." They were interrupted as Renge came to them, camera in hand.

"So, what do you make of the competition?" she asked, eyes sparkling. "I think that Len Tsukimori is a rather cutting figure, and he is famous throughout Japan already; do you think he poses a threat, Kyouya-senpai?" The camera turned to him.

"We'll see." Kyouya replied. Seeing that she would get nothing else from him, she turned her lens on Haruhi.

"Haruhi, as our fairy's chosen, what do you make of this competition as a whole? Are you worried?"

"I don't know." Haruhi replied simply to the first question. Yes, she thought the competition was pretentious as a whole, but then again, thought rich people were pretentious as a general rule. "I'm not worried, no," she said to the second. She was downright horrible at music and she knew it, and thus she simply did not care. "However, I think this competition will be an interesting experience," she smiled for the camera.

She knew that Renge would get these videos to pretty much every member of the female population at Ouran, and thus every one of the Host Club's clients. There was no harm in trying to get more clients – It would mean that she could quit the Host Club that much sooner. Seemingly satisfied with her responses, Renge moved on.

"Could everyone please sit down?" A voice ordered politely, and the students (except the string ensemble and Renge) gravitated towards the table.

A petulant Renge argued with one of the teachers as she was escorted from the room, to no avail – the agreement was that she could interview the competitors before the dinner started, and no later. The Chairman of Ouran had already sat down at the head of the table. Yuzuru Suoh was a tall, forbidding man, but it was clear he intimidated no one as he still wore a smile upon his face. The teachers in charge of the contest from Seiso Academy and St. Lobelia's Institute sat on his left and right sides, and their students occupied the seats closest to them.

Haruhi took a seat between Kyouya and Kaoru. Tamaki seated himself across from her, beside one of the Seiso students. It was clear that he managed to get someone (likely not the twins) to divulge the secret as to the location of his bear, as he wore a pleased expression on his face.

"Isn't this exciting?" he asked Haruhi happily.

"The food certainly is." Haruhi replied. She had good reason too, as the chefs (normally the cafeteria staff) brought out the meal, which included among other things crabs and lobster. Someone gestured for the string ensemble to stop.

"Before we begin with our meal, I'd like everyone to introduce themselves." Yuzuru Suoh smiled and gestured for the first student to his left to begin.

The purple-haired senior from Seiso was the one first one to speak. "My name is Azuma Yunoki." His hair was long, and left free for more maximum effect and his white tuxedo accentuated his features. His voice was calm and Haruhi thought that she heard one of the girls in the string ensemble sigh. "I am a third year, and I play the flute."

"Kazuki Hihara!" announced the green-haired youth who had earlier been entertaining the red-haired girl. His expression was simple and carefree, and a smile adorned his features. Somehow, Haruhi was reminded of Tamaki. "I'm also a third year, and I play the trumpet. It's nice to meet you!"

"Kahoko Hino." said the red-haired girl seated beside him, who seemed to be much calmer. Her hair was layered around her face, her expression cheery. "I'm a second year, and I play the violin," she said with a smile to everyone before continuing, "It's a pleasure to meet everyone."

A tall green-haired boy spoke. "Ryoutarou Tsuchiura." His voice was deep and he looked like the type that the Ouran Soccer Club would have actively scouted. His figure was muscular, and his expression – unreadable. "Second year. I play the piano."

"Keiichi Shimizu." said the blond boy who had been napping earlier. His eyes were far-off, as if he was gazing into the distance and he looked like he was on the verge of falling asleep on his plate. "First year. Cello."

The girl beside him spoke. "Shoko Fuyuumi." Her hair was cut short, and pinned back by clips. Her eyes were trained to no where in particular; that is, she seemed to be making an intensive effort not to look at the others. Her voice was quiet – Haruhi had to strain to hear her. "I am a first year. I play the clarinet."

"Len Tsukimori." Haruhi recognized his name. She could see why Renge had said that he had a "cutting figure." His hair was coloured blue, had a slender figure, and a disciplined posture. His eyes and figure were sharp, but were no sharper than his voice. "Second year. Violin."

"Tamaki Suoh." Tamaki smiled with one of his truly sincere smiles that reached his eyes and spread out to everyone around him, like an infectious disease. "I'm in second year and I play the piano. I'm really happy to meet everyone!"

"Takashi Morinozuka. Third year. Flute." Mori-senpai stated in his reserved tone. He rarely spoke so much.

"Mitsukuni Haninozuka." Honey-senpai introduced himself. "I'm a third year and I play the cello and I really like sweet things!" He said it all in one breath.

"Hikaru Hitachiin." The first of the twins said, a devilish grin flirting about his features. "First year. I play the trumpet."

"Kaoru Hitachiin." An identical grin danced on Kaoru's face. Haruhi could see danger ahead. "First year. I play the alto saxophone."

Haruhi was startled to hear that, but before she could ask him about it, it was her turn. She modeled her answer to the others. "Haruhi Fujioka. I'm a first year, and I play the clarinet."

"Kyouya Ohtori." Kyouya said, in a voice that matched Tsukimori's for sharpness. "I am a second year, and I also play the violin." Tsukimori glanced across the table at Kyouya with a clearly surprised look on his face, but it was quickly replaced with disdain.

"Hana Yasatsune." The first of the Lobelia girls spoke, her voice soft, her eyes trained to the table. She had brown hair, braided back simply and was wearing a plain dress. "I am a first year. I play the oboe."

"Hinako Tsuwabaki. I am also a first year." This girl's voice was much stronger and more confident than her classmate's. She looked around the table ferociously, eyes narrowed. "I play the viola."

"Chizuru Maihara." The girl beside her had a willowy figure and a feminine voice. Her brown curls danced around her face. "I am in second year. I play the piano." She smiled at the group. "It is nice to meet you all," she said, though her posture said differently.

"My name is Benio Amakusa." The girl's voice was surprisingly deep. Her hair was slicked back, and cut short, and rather than a dress, she had opted for a suit. "I am also a second year, and I play the alto saxophone."

The girl beside Benio seemed stunned by her luck; after all, Benio was a famous figure at their school. Blonde and brown-eyed, she started when she realized it was her turn. "Kimiko Shizuma. I am in third year. I play the flute."

"Mika Tanaka." Her long, black hair was left free, accentuated with a red dress. "I am a second year. I play the French horn."

"Arisa Kimihiro." The last girl, with blonde curls and blue eyes, spoke. Her voice was direct; her face determined. "Second year. I play the contrabass."

"And that's everyone," the Chairman announced rather obviously. "Again, these competitions are meant to foster unity within the schools, so I hope that everyone looks past the rankings and befriend one another. And with that, I shall not keep you from your food any longer. Enjoy the meal, and enjoy the competition." He motioned for the string ensemble to play again.

Conversation buzzed around the table. "I thought you played the bass clarinet," Haruhi said through mouthfuls of food, glancing at Kaoru.

"I started with the bass clarinet, but I switched over to saxophone a year ago," he replied. "Had to learn new key fingerings and everything. So what do you think of that Tsukimori, ehh, Hikaru?" He turned to his twin, grinning.

"I think he's a little too serious about the competition," Hikaru replied, smirking. "That could be fixed."

"Don't do anything too rash," Kyouya said to them. "Sabotaging him could be rather costly to cover up; His parents are relatively wealthy and influential musicians as well. It would be troublesome."

"Kyouya," Tamaki's voice was a whine. "Tsukimori won't talk to me." It was apparent that he had attempted to engage the blue-haired youth into a conversation, and in that, had failed miserably. The most he could get out of him was "Why do you want to know?" and "I don't feel obligated to tell you that."

"Tsukimori seemed to be rather interested in you," Honey-sempai said curiously.

"Tsukimori's already won several competitions in the country," Kaoru said thoughtfully. "But then, so has Kyouya; maybe he sees him as a rival."

"It's possible." Kyouya acknowledged. He turned to Kaoru. "How has Haruhi been playing?"

Kaoru and Hikaru let out groans. "Miserably," Kaoru said.

"She can read sheet music now," Hikaru followed up. "But we're pretty sure she's tone-deaf or something, because she can't even play a scale. And even though she knows the notes, it's like . . ."

"It's as if she can't transfer it over to the instrument," Kaoru finished. "In short . . . "

"We're pretty sure she's going to be dead last in the competition," They chimed in at the same time.

"Neh, Kyouya, what have you heard about the other competitors?" Honey-sempai asked. The rest of the Host Club turned to him.

"Azuma Yunoki comes from a wealthy family who own a flower arranging school." He began. "He's fairly accomplished in both that and the flute, and gets competitive grades in regular classes as well. In short, class A. He is likely the strongest competitor from Seiso aside from Tsukimori. Kazuki Hihara is a competent musician who thoroughly enjoys what he does, though it seems that he doesn't care about rankings. Kahoko Hino is their school fairy's chosen competitor, but has the upper hand among the chosen competitors from the schools because she has already played through the Seiso intraschool concours."

"Ryoutarou Tsuchiura was already an accomplished pianist in elementary school," Tamaki chimed in. He didn't know any of the other competitors at all, but he had heard of Tsuchiura before. "It was thought that he was a musical genius!" It was clear that Tamaki was looking forward to competing with him.

"But he seemed to have quit after junior high," Kyouya said. "Keiichi Shimizu is an accomplished cellist, but sleeps often, sometimes all day, and has been described as an alien. Shoko Fuyuumi is shy, and is known to become nervous enough to affect her performance before a competition." He continued with the St Lobelia students. "This is the first competition for Hana Yasatsune, which means that she is intimidated easily," he cast a glance at the twins, who had suddenly grinned at each other. "Hinako Tsuwabaki is competent at the viola, and has won a few competitions before; the same goes for both Chizuru Maihara and Benio Amakusa, though Amakusa has won more competitions than either Tsuwabaki or Maihara. Mika Tanaka is their school fairy's chosen competitor. The other two are not worth mentioning," he finished. Haruhi could almost hear the crisp snap of a clipboard punctuating his remarks, as it would have in a Host Club meeting; however, Kyouya possessed no clipboard at the moment.

"I bet he just got in because he's the son of the Chairman." A harsh voice sailed clearly above the dinner conversation. Tamaki turned a shade of light pink. Hearing this challenge, several of the students talking quieted down and turned. Down and across the table, Hinako Tsuwabaki, seated amidst the Lobelia students, glared her challenge at him.

"More than likely," a female voice replied. Hers was softer, like wind rushing through leaves. Chizuru Maihara smiled and looked down the table at Tamaki. "But then, even if he did, it would make him easy to defeat, wouldn't it?"

"But I didn't!" Tamaki protested, his face now bright red. "I didn't cheat!"

"Can you _prove_ it?" A full-throated, deep voice challenged. Benio Amakusa lounged at her seat like an emperor on a throne. Haruhi chanced a glance down the table at the teachers. The Chairman seemed to be interested in what Tamaki would respond with, and the teachers, following his suit, were speaking quietly to one another, ignoring the proceedings.

"If I had a piano--" His complaint was cut off by the green-haired youth at near the end of the table; Hihara, Haruhi recalled.

"Neh, this isn't really the place for this, is it?" He asked. He wore a smile, though somewhat shyly; it was clear he was trying to cool down the hotheads. "I mean, this competition is about unity, and challenging one of the contestants before even the first selection isn't really working towards that purpose, is it?"

"Exactly!" Tamaki jumped at his opportunity. "It's about making friends and having fun!"

Several of the girls tittered. It was clear that even if these two possessed illusions about the contest, very few of the others did.

"Keep to your own group, Hihara," Hinako snapped back at him. "I wouldn't be so quick to say that; after all, _**your**_ famous Len Tsukimori probably only got in because of his _famous_ parents." She placed emphasis on the word 'famous.'

Eyes shifted to the blue-haired youth, who had not looked up from his meal since the start of it. He gave Hinako a look of disdain and continued eating – Unlike Tamaki, he had heard this from others many times before.

"Aren't you going to say anything in your defense, Tsukimori?" Hinako dug a little further at him. "Or are you letting it slide because you know it's true?"

Tsukimori put down his utensils, and dabbed at his mouth with a napkin before speaking. "Why?" He replied nonchalantly. "This is a competition, and we will see who has ability and who does not at the first selection. Speaking of which," he turned to the end of the tables, where the teachers sat. "You said you would not reveal the first theme unless we had this meeting. What is the first theme?"

"We will tell you at the end of the night," the Chairman replied. Tsukimori sighed, and conversation buzzed anew among the students.

"What was that about?" Kaho, who had been quiet through the proceedings, asked.

"It's nothing," Kazuki turned to her with a grin, "Lobelia students have always been a little out there."

"Well, they haven't won a competition in the last decade," Ryoutarou explained. "They're looking to win this one." He glanced down the table at the Ouran students, who were laughing as the twins were taking turns throwing various fruit at the Suoh boy. Tsukimori was more than a little annoyed as half the food that missed Suoh hit him. "What do you make of the competition?"

"I know Kyouya Ohtori," Azuma cut in. "He's the third son of the Ohtori Group." He smiled as Kyouya looked over, hearing his name. "My family very much enjoyed the stay at your Aqua Gardens last winter," he said in a friendly tone. "My grandmother asked me to tell you that the piranha aquarium was unsightly."

"I will be sure to tell my father so," Kyouya replied, his tone and mannerisms very much that of a businessman's son. "We hope you will come to stay again."

Azuma turned back towards Kazuki, Kaho, and Ryoutarou. "He is well accomplished by all accounts. The boy beside him, Haruhi Fujioka, is their school's chosen, and is notable because unlike the rest of them, he doesn't come from a rich, influential family. The Hitachiin brothers," he nodded in the direction of the twins, who were dodging ammunition slung back by their lord, "stand to inherit the Hitachiin clothing line from their mother."

"They're the sons of the designer?" asked Kaho as she gazed down the table at them, wide-eyed.

Azuma nodded. "The two beside them, Haninozuka and Morinozuka, are the eldest sons of the families that train many of the world's militaries and security operations. Suoh is the illegitimate son of the Suoh family, but stands to inherit the entire corporation."

"Woooow," Kazuki breathed in awe. He'd heard of many of these families before, but had no idea that the people sitting around him could be that wealthy.

"What's more interesting is that those seven boys have also made a rather unprecedented club at Ouran," Azuma continued, eyeing the end of the table with interest. "They're also known as the Ouran Host Club."

"I've heard of that," Ryoutarou rested his chin on his hands, his plate empty. "They entertain rich girls there, don't they?"

"Yes." Azuma cocked his head to one side. "Though I wonder when they find the time, between school, music, and other contests, for such things. Ohtori and Suoh in particular are fairly frequent contestants in other competitions outside the school. As for the Lobelia students," he nodded in the direction of the girls across the table, and lowered his voice a bit. "Hinako Tsuwabaki, Chizuru Maihara, and Benio Amakusa are in the White Lily Society, but the rest have no background worth mentioning."

The conversation ended as Suoh approached Kazuki, wiping a loose strawberry from the back of his jacket. "Tsukimori told me I should talk to you about this, and I just had to know; What do you think are the merits of Pokemon Diamond and Pearl?" And thus began a heated, enthusiastic conversation on that very subject.

After the end of dessert (somehow – Haruhi wasn't quite sure how – Honey-senpai had managed to finish a whole cake at the end), the Chairman clapped his hands and stood up.

"And now to what some of you have been waiting for all night," he said with the smile. "This competition is done in the same manner that I am sure many of you will have experienced; there are four selections, and each one has a theme. The winner of each selection earns himself and his school twenty points, and second and third earn nineteen and eighteen points respectively. Likewise, points are awarded down the rankings, with the last place finisher earning no points.

At the end of the fourth selection, points for each selection are tallied, and the final rankings posted. The school whose competitors earn the most points wins. The first selection will take place three weeks from now, and you are free to choose any piece you wish, so long as it fits the theme. If necessary, you may have an accompanist. Your interpretation of each theme is also important. The theme for the first selection is 'Human Nature.'" He seated himself once again, as soft whispers buzzed around the table.

"'Human Nature,' huh?" Haruhi heard Kaoru mutter under his breath. "Could be tricky."

Fin

Author's Notes: Err, various notes for this chapter, and three in particular.

1) First, I'm referring to the Seiso (La Corda D'Oro) characters by first name because in Ouran High School Host Club, they refer to each other by first name, and I wanted to be consistent. I felt it would make it awkward if all the Seiso characters went by last name even when referring to each other, but the Ouran characters still called each other by first name. Thus, when referring to each other and talking to each other, Seiso characters will use first name (with possible exceptions of Tsukimori, Fuyuumi and Shimizu, because I haven't decided that yet). When referring to students from other schools, all characters will use last names.

2) This isn't important, but as indicated above, La Corda D'Oro characters will have a larger role than I'd originally planned, however it will still be told mostly from Ouran's perspective.

3) In this chapter, Yunoki took a rather Kyouya-like role in describing the competitors to his schoolmates. While I don't think it'd actually be in his personality to do so, he is most likely to know the Ouran characters or have heard about them. So that's more of an explanation if people were wondering.

Other Stuff: I'm trying to make this piece of writing as musically accurate as possible, so if you play a musical instrument (any listed above) and are willing to receive emails around three in the morning that ask really weird stuff like "What's the difference between a clarinet and a bass clarinet? Do they have the same fingering tab things?" and "What classical pieces can you play on a saxophone anyway?" and "Is it even POSSIBLE to play Fur Elise on the flute?" and reply to me sometime within that week, I would really, really appreciate your help.

Thanks all!


	3. Chaos Before The First Selection

**Title:** Crescendo  
**Chapter:** 3  
**Pairing(s):** None  
**Rating:** T for safety  
**Genre:** Humour/Crossover  
**Warning(s):** AU; Crosses over with Kiniro no Corda; Flagrant OOC-ness on everyone's part. . . extreme suckiness. . . I'M SORRY I'LL WORK HARDER ON THE NEXT ONE !!!  
**Summary:** [AU, Ouran High School x Kiniro No Corda Ouran Academy was always known as a good music school, so what happens when they face off against Seiso Academy and St. Lobelia's Institute for first place in the tri-annual music competition?  
**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran High School Host Club, Kiniro no Corda, or any other anime that may or may not be mentioned.  
**Thank Yous**: To Sailor Melina, who was the ONLY one out of FOUR people I sent a copy to TWO WEEKS AGO to be beta'ed! Thank yous!

Crescendo

Chapter 3: Chaos Before The First Selection

Kyouya stared absentmindedly at his blinking laptop monitor, plotting. In the background, a piano tinkered out the notes of Chopin's "Grande Valse Brillante" as Tamaki practiced his piece for the competition. The fool had already told everyone what he was playing, rather than (as was the norm) keep it a secret. He brought his attention back to his monitor and pondered the latest problem; they were booked full. With all the excitement for the competition, there had been something akin to a stampede as girls booked days to come and wish them luck. However, with the need to practice more and more, they could only open the Host Club to customers half the time they normally could, at most. And yet this was an excellent opportunity for a profit . . .

He turned around as the doors creaked open and Kaoru's voice floated in. "Honestly, Hikaru, I think we're going to have to go with it. The first selection is a week away and there's nothing else that she can play."

The twins and Haruhi, sandwiched in between them, walked into the room. Hikaru looked decidedly frustrated, while Kaoru simply looked resigned. Haruhi, standing in the middle, looked apathetic.

"What's the problem?" Kyouya inquired, as the twins wandered over, plunking themselves in chairs at his table. Haruhi went to get tea and cakes, which was her usual job.

"We figured out what Haruhi is playing for the competition," Hikaru said grimly.

"It's a little worse than we thought," Kaoru admitted.

"Because she's going to be playing Hot Cross Buns," they chimed in together.

Kyouya raised an eyebrow, and returned to looking at his monitor. Not that he was reading it; he'd simply found that no one would question him if he at least looked occupied. This provided a whole new set of problems, as Haruhi would inevitably be last in the competition. Thus, to win, the other Host Club members would all need to score in the top half or so.

"Kyouya, what are all these boxes doing in the back room?" Haruhi called from said location. "They're sort of in the way of the cabinets."

"Oh," Kyouya responded, absentmindedly looking away from his blinking LCD. "We're selling them today, just bring them out with you before you take out the tea and cakes. It doesn't matter if they're still in the boxes."

"Okay," Haruhi replied. "What's in them anyways? They're really heavy." She came out carrying a box, dropping it by the table.

The "Grande Valse Brillante" stopped in a flourish as Tamaki stood up. "How could your subject our daughter to mean labour?!" he cried out dramaticallyHaru

. Kyouya didn't even blink.

"You were the one who set her up with the chores," he said, "and if you're so upset about it, why don't you go and help her with the boxes?"

"Fine, I will!" Tamaki sniffed, and went to the back room.

"Go get the tea, Haruhi." Haruhi sighed, rolled her eyes, and went to fetch the tea.

Hikaru and Kaoru were eagerly opening the boxes. "Books," Hikaru said, pulling a glossy book out.

"The Twenty-Third Interschool Competition," Kaoru read off the cover.

"What's this?" Honey-senpai skipped into the room, closely followed by his taller cousin. Hikaru passed him the book.

"Ooooh, they turned out well," Honey-senpai replied, impressed. "Don't you think, Takashi?" He held up the book for his cousin to see.

"You knew about these?" Kaoru asked, surprised.

"Yeah, Kyo asked we could give him some pictures." Honey grinned. "Though I wonder how he got the pictures of the competitors from the other schools? Look, there's a really good picture of Hino from Seiso, and the profile is pretty detailed."

However, an answer was not forthcoming as simultaneously, Haruhi brought out tea and cakes, Tamaki brought out the last of the boxes, and the doors to the Third Music Room crashed open.

"Hello, hello," Tamaki said to approximately ten very excited girls, running his fingers through his blond hair, automatically the gentleman. "A little early today?"

"Tamaki-senpai," one of the first-years Haruhi recognized from class 1B. "We bought it."

The girls squealed all at once, each pulling out a copy of a book. The Host Club looked askance at each other, clearly confused – The books hadn't even been released yet. In fact, most of the club hadn't even known they were being printed, so how could the girls have gotten a copy of it?

Their confusion was answered as one of the second-years in the party held her book out for the Club to see.

"Violin Romance – A Kyouya Ohtori/Len Tsukimori doujinshi," Hikaru read aloud, before collapsing into fits of laughter. Kaoru leaned beside him, similarly reduced to hilarity.

"Oh,that." Honey-senpai said, beaming. "Takashi and I saw a couple girls in the hall with those. But we didn't know what they were, then." Even Mori showed a trace of amusement. Tamaki looked as if he'd gone into shock, and Kyouya appeared to be utterly speechless.

"May I see that?" Haruhi asked, reaching with an unrestrained grin for a copy held by the nearest girl. She glanced at the cover, which featured a good drawing of Kyouya, back to back with Tsukimori, both holding violins. "By Renge Hoshakuji," she read the line of print on the side. She flipped through the book with curiosity.

It was a wonder that the Host Club session went without serious problems after that. Kyouya, while at times appearing as if he wanted nothing better than to become rather violent with the book and occasionally with the girls who held them, also appeared to have the self-control to hold himself from actually doing so. It was even more of a wonder, Haruhi thought, that they actually did manage to sell a good number of the profile books that Kyouya had compiled for the competition.

When the doors eventually shut, the last guests having left for the day, Kyouya pulled out his cell phone and made a call.

"Yes, there is a doujinshi by Renge Hoshakuji called "Violin Romance,"" he said in a tone of supreme disgust. "Find all copies of it, and destroy them."

"It wasn't that bad," Haruhi told him. Over the session, she'd successfully managed to skim the book. "There weren't any really," she paused, choosing her words carefully, "explicit scenes, and overall the plot and plot development wasn't too bad."

Kyouya gave her a glare that would peel paint from the walls, before leaving the room and slamming the door as he left.

Meanwhile, at Seiso Academy, Kahoko Hino held a hair elastic between her teeth as she tried to brush her layered red hair into a ponytail. It was at times like this that she really hated how she had layered her hair – despite the best efforts, stray hairs still fell around her face. She sighed, frustrated, and gave up, typing her hair up as best as she could.

"Amou-san, can I borrow some bobby pins?" she called over to her friend, an aspiring journalist and one of the main reporters on the school newspaper.

"Sure thing," the long-haired brunette said, tossing over some black pins. "So what's your impression of the competition?" she asked.

"Thanks," Kaho replied, smiling. She threaded the bobby pins through her loose strands hair. Amou never missed an opportunity to needle someone for information. "I'm not sure," she admitted. She was much more open about her opinions than the others. "I didn't expect to have to participate in two competitions, but once you're in one, I guess you're in for the other too. The Ouran bunch are really handsome; they have a blond half-European pianist, he's absolutely hilarious. The Lobelia girls are kind of stuck-up, though; they only talk to each other, or they don't talk at all. Done." She turned to Amou, already in her gym clothes and her hair already braided out of the way. "Let's go. Soccer today, isn't it?"

"Yeah," Amou said. "But first, one of the girls here with a friend in Ouran was passing these around today; I thought you might be interested." She passed her friend a glossy book, her eyes wrinkled in amusement. Kaho glanced at the cover, and her eyes widened. Amou continued, ignoring her friend's reaction. "I heard we're playing a game against class 2-5 today. Tsuchiura's in that class, right?"

"Yes, he is," Kaho replied. She packed the book away in her backpack, thinking to look at it later. She wasn't surprised that Amou knew – she would bet that Amou knew the classes, phone numbers, addresses, grades and extracurricular schedule of each and every one of the competitors in the concours. After all, they were hot stuff right now, and thus very, very newsworthy.

"Do you think he'd answer some questions for me after class?" Amou asked eagerly as they lined up. "I think I'm going to try to compile profiles of all the competitors in this concours."

"I'm not sure; maybe," Kaho said reluctantly, as they headed onto the soccer field. Class 2-5 was already there; she could see Ryoutarou's shock of dark green hair. She knew it'd be much harder to pull information from Ryoutatou than it was from her.

"All right, everyone," the teacher called out. "Gather around. We're having a game today; Class 2-2 versus class 2-5" he said, and announced the positions each student would be taking. Ryoutarou was announced to be a forward; so too was Kaho, to her surprise. To her even greater surprise, she didn't trip over her own feet; to her great relief, she also kicked the ball the right way.

Class 2-5 won, though it was close; the winning goal was fired by Ryoutarou in the last two minutes of the game. Kaho breathed a sigh of relief as the final whistle was blown; she was tired and she wanted to shower and go hole up in one of the music practice rooms. She still had to memorize her piece for the first contest. She slipped off to the change rooms as Amou mobbed Ryoutarou. She knew that her classmate would be memorizing every word that came out of his mouth.

When she stepped out of the change rooms into the hallway of Seiso Academy five minutes later, Ryoutarou was standing outside the door. "What are you doing here?" Kaho asked, surprised. "You didn't agree to give Amou an interview, did you?"

"Of course not," he replied dryly. He'd clearly taken a quick shower, as his hair was still damp and falling in his eyes. "I hope you haven't given her one. Going to the practice rooms?"

"Yeah. Oh, and speaking of Amou, she passed something to me in the change room before class," she said, suddenly remembering the book. She stopped, fishing it out of her bag, and taking a close look at the cover. "Violin Romance? Sounds like one of the books that Mio would read." She flipped through it, eyes widening. "Isn't that one of Ouran's guys?" She passed the book to Ryoutarou.

His eyes widened. "Yeah; Kyouya Ohtori. He's widely believed to be the best violinist of our age in the country. We better not show this to Tsukimori," he said. He closed the book, glancing at the cover. "I dread to think how he'd react."

"Kaho, Ryou!" A jaunty, cheerful voice cut through their conversation as Kazuki dashed up behind them, slinging his non-instrument-carrying arm around Kaho. He paused, looking at the book. "What's that?" He reached over a plucked the book out of Ryoutarou's hands.

"A doujinshi, by one of the Ouran girls, I think. Art's not bad." He raised an eyebrow at his senior, crossing his arms over his chest. "What's with 'Ryou?'"

"Ryou is just so much easier to say than Ryoutarou," Kazuki explained. "Besides, Ryoutarou is boring! I mean, who wants 'firstborn son' in their name?" He took at look at his stolen prize. "Violin Romance? A Kyouya Ohtori/Len Tsukimori doujinshi?" His expressive voice became more incredulous by syllable.

"I like my name," Ryoutarou said, frowning at the shorter boy. "As we were saying before you interrupted, we better not show that to Tsukimori."

"Really?" Kazuki asked, flipping through the book. "I don't know – Tsukimori might not react much. You know him; cool and distant. Something like this might freak out one of us, but he might take it calmly."

"You willing to take that chance?" Ryoutarou raised an eyebrow.

"Well, I'm not saying we should show it to him," Kazuki retorted. "I'm just saying we shouldn't make any efforts to hide it from him either. I mean, if we have a copy–"

"Amou gave it to me," Kaho interrupted, explaining. "So I don't know how widespread it is yet. Amou has a way of getting gossip and stuff before everyone else, so. . ."

"Even so," Kazuki continued, gesturing expansively with the book. "If it's not widespread now, it will be within the next week. We don't have the time to try to track down every one, so we shouldn't bother trying to hide it from him in the first place."

"Hide what?" As they were speaking, the three students had reached the door to the music hallways. A cultured voice broke in from behind as Kaho opened the door. Kazuki passed the book to Azuma before Kaho or Ryoutarou could say anything.

"Oh,"Azuma said, paging through the book. "Well, it appears either Kyouya or Tsukimori have a fan. So why hide it?" He shut it and passed it into a waiting hand.

"Well, there's the rather obvious implication that both of them are gay," Ryoutarou said coolly. "Gay together, to be exact."

"It's a fangirl thing," Azuma said, mildly condescending. He brushed his long hair out of his face with his free hand. "You get it if you're popular with girls. I've had a few about myself and various others, usually seniors. They've decided I'm a bottom."

"I haven't seen any!" Kazuki broke in, surprised.

"Well, of course you haven't," Azuma replied. "I don't go around giving them out or anything, and girls only give them to other girls. I don't even know what they're about, because I've only seen the covers of them."

"Pretty good," a sleepy voice said from behind. "You're blocking the doorway." He closed the book, having read it already. "It was pretty good though," he said, trailing off as he entered a thoughtful daze. He passed it back to Kaho. Shoko was standing behind him, having walked with him to the music hallway. Her eyes were huge over Keiichi's shoulder.

"I don't think," she said softly, "that we should let Tsukimori-senpai see that."

"See what?" A cold voice sliced through the group. Tsukimori had arrived, and he wasn't particularly pleased to see his fellow competitors clogging up the music hallway. Silence fell among the group as Kaho, Ryoutarou, and Kazuki conspicuously looked away from him.

"See what?" he repeated, his tone slightly more demanding.

"Oh," Keiichi had seemingly heard him for the first time. Apparently Tsukimori could recall even Keiichi from one of his daydream states. "Someone made a doujinshi about you and Kyouya Ohtori from Ouran. It was pretty good. . ."

". . . What?" Tsukimori's voice was a combination of cold surprise and sharp disapproval.

"No, we didn't make it!" Kazuki exclaimed, explaining rapidly. "We think someone in Ouran did it."

"A fangirl, from the looks of it," Azuma added serenely. "And the artist, Renge Hoshakuji, doesn't go to this school; she's the daughter of a major businessman currently living in France. They have extensive business ties to the Ohtori Group. I don't personally know her, though."

"May I see it?" Tsukimori asked. It wasn't so much a question as it was a demand. Wordlessly, Kaho handed him the book.

"I should, er, go and practice," Kaho stuttered. She was often unnerved by the blue-haired boy's demeanor. She fled into the nearest room.

"I ought to be practicing too," Kazuki said, his eyes wide. "I completely forgot!" He, too, entered one of the practice rooms.

Ryoutarou gave Azuma, Keiichi and Shoko a meaningful glance before making his own excuse. Shoko took the hint and fled to another room, steering the daydreaming Keiichi along.

"You know, it's not that bad," Azuma added before he left. "I've had some really explicit ones about me. It means you've got your first fan."

Tsukimori stood alone in the hallway, flipping through the book, his disgust increasing with every page turned. "If this is an attempt to sabotage me, Ohtori," he murmured under his breath, "You might as well have not bothered." He tossed the book to the side of the hall and entered a practice room.

Fin

**Notes:**

1) Sorry about the OOC-ness, but I think a certain amount of it is necessary to keep the plot going. I'm doing my best to keep everyone more or less in character while still making sure there's progress.

2) As for the LCD characters, I've placed this competition to be AFTER the anime series, so I'm working from the assumption that in the few months that have passed since the end of the anime, they've gotten closer to each other (thus, first names are used). Hino and Tsuchiura are closer to each other than they are to everyone else simply because they're both General Ed students, and Hihara is closest to them after Yunoki, due to his personality. Fuyuumi and Shimizu are closer too, just because they're both first years and have had more interaction with each other.

3) Please suggest improvements. I'm trying to make this story fun, like both of the series that inspired it; if you have any suggestions to improve it, please say so!

4) Expect the next chapter around November. I'm going to aim to have it done by the end of October (I'm a slow writer, and it's university midterms that month), but even if it's finished then, likely it won't be posted until November.

5) I love you all! Thank you to everyone reading this and commenting or replying! You inspire me to write more!


	4. The First Selection

**Title:** Crescendo  
**Chapter:** 4  
**Pairing(s):** None  
**Rating:** T for safety  
**Genre:** Humour/Crossover  
**Warning(s):** AU; Crosses over with Kiniro no Corda  
**Summary:** [AU, Ouran High School x Kiniro No Corda Ouran Academy was always known as a good music school, so what happens when they face off against Seiso Academy and St. Lobelia's Institute for first place in the tri-annual music competition?  
**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran High School Host Club, Kiniro no Corda, or any other anime that may or may not be mentioned.

Chapter Four: The First Selection and Everything That's Involved

Haruhi sighed, polishing her clarinet with a cloth and some cleaning oil that Kaoru had given her (all the while lecturing on how important it was to look in a competition), and wishing she were at home. She could have done the laundry and studied for an important English test on Monday today, she thought rebelliously. Also, there was that essay for World History that needed to be done, and she had barely gotten through yesterday's Calculus homework . . . All in all, she really didn't want to be there.

"Excited yet?" Hikaru plunked himself down on the seat beside her; Ouran High School had built this preparation room particularly for the Interschool Music Competition, and had decked it out with its finest: brocade curtains, chairs gilded with foil gold and thick couches. A mosaic with various 'musical' (or so Haruhi thought) scenes lined the top of each wall; three of the walls were bordered with counters. The room was large, and certainly large enough to give plenty of space to the twenty-one competitors. She turned to face Hikaru, wondering idly why he had even bothered to sit down; he had been bouncing around impatiently for the past half hour.

"Not really, no," Haruhi responded to Hikaru in a deadpan voice. "I would rather be at home checking my Calculus homework and doing the laundry." Hikaru's reaction was an exasperated sigh, before he got up from his chair and resumed his ricocheting around the room.

"If you need any help with Calculus, Haruhi, I can help! Just ask me anytime," Honey-senpai said, looking very awkward as he carried his cello over to them. He sat down in the chair that Hikaru had vacated. Mori followed him and stood silently, giving only a smile when Haruhi acknowledged him.

"No, thanks, Honey-senpai, I should be fine," Haruhi replied. She had found yesterday's lesson, on integration by parts, trickier than usual but nothing that she couldn't handle.

"Are you sure?" Honey-senpai asked anxiously. "I know the competition takes a lot of time out of your usual schedule with practice and whatnot, so if you ever need the help, just ask!"

"How's the suit?" Kaoru wandered over, his saxophone gleaming. Unlike his brother, who only got excited and impatient before a competition, Kaoru was a great deal more nervous. Haruhi was willing to bet that he had polished his saxophone at least three or four times over the last hour. "Not itchy or anything?"

"It's fine," Haruhi reassured him. The twins had been in charge of the What Will Haruhi Wear For The Competition Committee, of which only they were party to. Tamaki had decreed to them that, as she couldn't dress as a girl for the competition, her outfit had to carry 'effeminate designs.' Kyouya had promptly told them that it couldn't be too effeminate, lest some girls suspect her true gender, leaving the twins stuck between the proverbial rock and a hard place. They had compensated by giving her suit frills at the neck and hands, and downplayed the whole effect with a stiff black vest and black trousers.

Haruhi thought it looked something a vampire would wear, like perhaps something from Bram Stoker's Dracula. It wasn't, however, as if she really cared, and she didn't have anything else to wear.

"NO!" The sharp wail came from the direction of, strangely enough, the ceiling. Around the room, eyes flew to the ceiling until they hit the chandelier, a magnificently designed masterpiece floating ethereally above the centre of the room. A blonde fairy was cringing, teary-eyed, within the metal framework, trapped there by a black-haired fairy with purple wings. Melee had somewhere found a barbecue skewer, with which he was using to prod the blonde fairy.

"Lili!" A red-headed girl across the room immediately dashed over to the scene. Haruhi recalled her name vaguely; Kahoko Hino, or some such? Dodging another one of Melee's strikes with the skewer, the blonde fairy escaped and fled to the relative safety of his chosen competitor.

"Boys," a drawn out, high-pitched voice rang out from another wall. A third fairy, with brown eyes, brown hair and red wings, floated around the girls from Lobelia's. "How utterly, completely disgusting."

"Agreed," Tsuwabaki said to it. The girls promptly went back to their own preparations.

Melee ignored them as well, taking the opportunity to swing around dangerously on the chandelier. He cackled his glee. "I can't wait to see how much your competitor messes up this year!" he called out to the blonde fairy.

"She's not going to!" Lili cried back angrily from the relative safety of behind Hino's head. "You're not going to hospitalize my competitor this year; I won't let you!"

"Melee, stop that!" Haruhi, seeing the danger to the chandelier and remembering Kyouya's warning, gave her clarinet to Honey-senpai to hold and grabbed a chair and headed over to the chandelier. Although, she remembered, the words "No," "Stop it," and "Don't do that" had no effect on this fairy. Melee would do what he would do, and not much would stop him. At the moment, what he was inclined to do was to wreck the chandelier, and Haruhi didn't even want to think about how much debt that would add on to her already considerable amount.

Putting the chair down under the chandelier and climbing on it, Haruhi thanked the gods that this room had a fairly low ceiling. After a couple swipes, she grabbed her school's resident fairy from midair.

He promptly bit her fingers.

"Ow!" Haruhi snapped, and let go. Melee gave the chandelier one last, strong push, sending it swinging, forcing her to topple back off the chair, into a heap on the floor.

"Haha!" he giggled madly, "You'll have to work harder than that to stop me!" He flew off towards the auditorium, stopping only to topple over a couple statues and another chair.

"Are you all right?" A concerned face hovered over her, framed by red locks.

"I'm fine," Haruhi reassured her politely, pulling herself off the floor. "I'm sorry about my school's fairy." Her eyes lingered on the fairy that floated by Hino's shoulder: blonde, purple-eyes, and with blue wings. So this was Lili of Seiso Academy.

"Oh, no, it's all right, umm. . . Fujioka-san?" Kaho replied, hazarding a guess to this boy's name. He looked really young, younger than a first year normally would. Her eyes betrayed her curiosity about him. "I'm Kaho, Kahoko Hino. I'm Lili's chosen, from Seiso. Umm, you're bleeding." She gestured to his hand.

"Haruhi!" Tamaki had run over to her. "Are you all right? You're bleeding!"

"It's only a little cut," she told him, knowing he would become frantic and probably say a lot of nonsense and quite possibly hint at or reveal her secret if she didn't. She examined her fingers; the cuts from Melee's teeth were actually a bit worse than a little cut. She cursed herself inwardly for not remembering that his teeth were pointed and sharp.

"Nonetheless, you should go get it bandaged. I'll make your excuses to the Chairman." Kyouya had approached noiselessly as usual. "The actual competition starts in another half hour, so as long as you're back before then it'll be fine. Hino-san," he politely acknowledged the girl with a nod, and pulled the worrying Tamaki away.

Haruhi nodded, and turned to Kahoko. "I guess I'll see you later, Hino-san," she said politely, before leaving for the nurse's office.

"Falling for him already, Kaho?" Kazuki asked her jovially as she returned.

"Don't be ridiculous," Kaho snapped, sitting down on a couch as Shoko and Ryoutarou made room. "I'm just curious about him because he's another one of the fairies' chosen. The girl from St. Lobelia's won't talk to me at all; she just glares at me and gives me diplomatic not-answers."

"And he's cute," Ryoutarou butted in.

"Don't be ridiculous," Kaho said again, as she pulled her violin case closer to her. She had set her violin, shoulder rest and all, back in it before rushing to Lili's aid. Pulling out her bow and a chunk of rosin, she began rosining her bow.

"If you don't like him, senpai, then who do you like?" Shoko asked teasingly. The girl had gained quite a bit of confidence since the last competition.

"I don't know," Kaho replied. "Why don't you tell me who you like?"

"Umm, I don't know," she said with a slight giggle. "Ohtori-san is really handsome."

"Hmm, really?" Kaho looked over at the boy in question and considered. "I don't really know, I think he's kind of cold, actually . . . The half-Asian one, Suoh, he's really friendly to everyone."

"I'm sorry to bother you," Len approached them, looking rather as if he wouldn't have liked to talked to them at all. "But have you seen my violin anywhere?"

"Why?" Kaho asked, surprised. "Didn't you just have it?"

"Yes, but," Len explained, "I went to the restroom briefly and left it on the counter over there, and it was gone by the time I returned."

"Sorry," Ryoutarou said, rather bluntly. "We haven't seen it."

"The fairies had an argument," Shoko ventured shyly. Len intimidated her. "One of them bit one of the boys from Ouran, and . . ." her voice trailed off into silence, as if she felt she had said too much.

"Understatement of the day, Shoko," Kazuki burst out.

"Sorry, Len," Kahoko said; while all of Seiso's competitors had known each other for months, she was still the only one who was truly comfortable with him. "It was rather exciting, I don't think anyone was paying attention. Try asking around?"

Len nodded, preoccupied, and wandered off to ask the Lobelia girls. Watching, Kaho inwardly winced as the Lobelia girls verbally tore him apart.

"Everyone, gather around," A teacher, one Kaho didn't recognize, called out. Kanasawa-sensei motioned for all of them to go over to her.

"You will be drawing numbers for the order in which you will play," she explained to them kindly, showing them a paper bag. "Ladies first," she held the bag out to the Lobelia students.

Haruhi dashed back into the room as the teacher, whom she recognized as one of the secretaries normally with the Chairman, was allowing the Seiso students to draw numbers from the bag. She joined the rest of the Ouran students waiting to draw their numbers. The twins were sniggering quietly to themselves.

"What did you guys do now?" she sighed, knowing them far too well at this point.

"We hid Tsukimori's violin." Kaoru said, laughing. "I thought it would stop Hikaru pacing around like a nut."

"And it would also stop Kaoru from sitting in a corner polishing that saxophone and shaking like a leaf," Hikaru added.

"Where did you put it?" Haruhi asked, mildly alarmed. She didn't think it was a good policy to sabotage the opposition, but then again, she would bet that Kyouya knew perfectly well where they hid it and when to return the missing instrument.

"Under the counter," Hikaru explained, "because most people don't know they can open up."

"And it was the only place we could reach discreetly while everyone had their attention focused on you," Kaoru finished, as the bag reached them. "Fourteen. Hikaru?"

"Thirteen."

Haruhi reached into the bag and pulled out the last paper. "Third," she said, surprised. Thinking of something, she turned to Kyouya. "Hey, Kyouya, can I go home if I'm done early? I have a lot of work to do. . ."

"No," Kyouya replied absentmindedly. He seemed to be far more interested in watching Tsukimori, the cold Seiso student, pace around worriedly looking for his missing instrument. "There will probably be announcements after the actual competition, though we won't be getting the results until at least tomorrow, and it isn't customary to leave until your competitors have played their pieces. He drew seven; what do you think the odds are that he will think to look in the cupboard right under where he left the violin?"

Haruhi sighed, and dropped into one of the chairs.

"Whoever is first, please go ahead." The secretary smiled and exited the room, leaving the room in the capable hands of that teacher from Seiso and another instructor from Lobelia's. Benio Amakusa, the tall, androgynous senior from Lobelia's stood and exited in the direction of the stage, saxophone in hand.

"What number have you got?" Kahoko sat back down on a couch, sweeping her long skirt out of the way. Shoko sat down on one side of her, Kazuki on the other. Azuma joined them, his flute polished to shining. "I have twelve."

"Nine," Shoko said, her voice showing a little more nervousness.

"Seventeen," Kazuki smiled.

"Second," Azuma replied, with a smile that reached his eyes. One could see why he was so popular with the girls at school. "You'll be fine, Shoko-san," he said, his voice more polite than other times that Kaho had heard him speak.

"I'm going to go talk to Fujioka-san, over there," she decided, and rose.

Haruhi snapped out of her rebellious thoughts as an announcement came across the PA system, announcing the name, school, and piece that Amakusa had chosen to play. She also noticed that the redhead from Seiso Academy, Hino-san, was approaching her.

"Hi, umm," Hino hesitated. "I was wondering how you were enjoying the competition."

Haruhi thought for a few moments about that question. In all honesty, she hated it; it was a waste of her time, seeing as she was pretty much tone-deaf and wasn't remotely musical. She hadn't hated the clarinet to start with, but with all the practicing the twins were making her do so that she would not, in their words "Bring shame onto your teachers . . . that is, us," she certainly hated it now. However, she contemplated, what were the repercussions of telling this stranger this? Hino-san wasn't a customer; she wasn't even an Ouran student. Did image matter in this case? Thinking it over, Haruhi decided, at the moment, to reserve her feelings of rebellious hatred to herself. After all, if image did matter, and somehow the profits of the Host Club went down, she could count on Kyouya to up her debt,

"It's all right," she said reluctantly. "It's not really my sort of thing."

"Oh," Hino said, seemingly put down, and paused. "I really like it, I never played the violin before, but I really like playing it. It has," she thought about her words, "really opened up a whole new world to me."

"I see." Haruhi replied politely, and they fell silent. Amakusa finished her piece, and returned to the room looking satisfied. The other Lobelia students immediately crowded around, asking her how it went.

"Oh, umm," Kahoko stammered, unnerved by the uncomfortable silence and the surprisingly reticent boy, "When are you playing? I'm, I'm really looking forward to listening to you."

"Third," Haruhi replied, slightly amused. Well, if this girl was looking forward to hearing her, she was in for a surprise. "And you?"

"Oh," Kahoko said, "Twelfth. I guess I should leave you alone while you, umm, prepare. I know I always like to have a couple minutes to myself before I play . . ." her voice trailed off as she waved goodbye, and returned to her own friends.

"What did she want?" Hikaru asked, plunking himself on a stool next to her.

"I think she was just saying hello," Haruhi replied, mind wandering. She wished she could just get this over with and go home, or that she had thought to bring some of her homework with her. She would have to remember that for next time. "I mean, she must be curious about me, right? She's another fairy's chosen, and I'm sure that the Lobelia student isn't saying that much to her." She motioned her head in the direction of the girl, having forgotten her name.

"Well," Kaoru said, "It's not customary for competitors to get friendly. I mean, Tsukimori over there is still frantically searching for his instrument." He motioned his head to where Tsukimori, getting more and more frustrated by the minute, was interrogating Honey-senpai and Mori-senpai. They hadn't seen anything, which left him with nothing.

"Haruhi!" Tamaki had wandered over to her. "What number do you have?"

"Third," she replied. "I suppose I'm next, as Yunoki is playing now."

"He's quite good!" Tamaki was delighted; Haruhi could see that he was enjoying the competition for what it was, rather than seeing the whole thing as a situation to be won. "I think Yunoki is finishing now though," he said, glancing at the PA system. "Go do Daddy proud!" He gave her a little push towards the door leading to the stage while indeed, Yunoki returned.

Haruhi sighed. "Let's get this over with," she murmured under her breath.

Across the room, Hino turned to congratulate Azuma. "Good job," she said. "How was the crowd?"

"Strange," he returned, smiling. "They're mostly girls, I can't tell if they're music students or not. Looks like most of them are here to see the Host Club, I saw a couple signs saying "Tamaki" and "Hitachiin."" He motioned his head over to the clump of boys near another corner of the room. "Found your violin yet, Tsukimori? I can help you look if you haven't."

"No," Len said tersely. "No, I should be able to locate it on my own."

"Well, if you're not going to accept any help, have you asked Ohtori?" He gestured to the student, who looked stiff but very good in a formal suit. Hearing his name, Kyouya wandered over.

"Ah, your violin?" he interjected, smiling. "Try under the counters where you left it. Good piece, Yunoki-san, very well played."

"Thank you," Yunoki replied politely. Looking at them, Kahoko couldn't help but wonder if Ohtori had a dark side the way that Azuma did. Two smiling devils, she thought ruefully. But, they are very handsome devils. Fujioka-san should be starting soon; I wonder how well he plays? I played all right during my first competition . . . Her train of thought was interrupted as Haruhi's chosen piece played over the intercom.

Two lines of music. Six measures, three of which repeated. The Lobelia girls burst into laughter as the Seiso students stood in shock. Hino was confused; did the intercom stop working or something?

"He did NOT just play that. Really, he did not," Kazuki said, looking almost depressed.

"What didn't he just play?" Kaho asked, bewildered. She had been tossed into the classical music world and had played Gavotte as her first piece, so she wasn't aware of anything simpler.

"Hot Cross Buns." Ryoutarou groaned. "It's the easiest song in the books, usually it's the first thing anyone learns. It only has three notes in it, after all. I bet he's tone-deaf or something, historically Ouran's chosen have been mediocre to good, but rarely absolutely horrible."

Kahoko chanced a glance over at the Ouran students. The tall blonde second-year looked on the verge of tears, the twins looked resigned, and the rest simply looked depressed. "I don't get it," she pronounced. "Don't you have to have, I don't know, a potential for music to be the fairy's chosen?"

"Depends on the school," Ryoutarou explained. "At Seiso, yes; you only see the fairy the year of the concours if you've got the potential. At St. Lobelia's, their fairy generally chooses someone who already has musical training. At Ouran, their fairy just chooses someone at random, usually someone who doesn't want to have anything to do with the competition."

"Oh," Kahoko replied, stunned, as Fujioka returned, expressionless, and packed up his clarinet. He settled himself in a chair with an air of apathy.

The next two competitors were from St. Lobelia's Institute, the first playing the contrabass and the second, the chosen, playing the French horn. "Like I said," Ryoutarou said of the latter, "She's had training, but I don't think it's in the French horn."

"So what did you think of Kimihiro, the girl who played the contrabass?" Kaho wanted to know.

"She's pretty good," he responded. "I don't know much about strings though."

"She should play a smaller instrument," Keiichi commented sleepily. "Her hands aren't quite big enough; her range isn't very big. Whose turn is it now?"

"We're on number six," Kahoko told him, and he promptly returned to sleep.

"Good luck!" One of the Lobelia's students called out sardonically to the tall boy leaving for the stage. "After hearing your first competitor, you'll need it!" The girls surrounding her laughed, though Kahoko noticed that the girl who played the French horn and another girl carrying an oboe didn't join them.

"No, he won't," Azuma murmured under his breath to her, as the Ouran student began playing his piece. "Morinozuka Takashi's won a couple competitions here and there." Kahoko read between the lines to what he wasn't saying: "But he is nothing compared to me."

Len, who played next, gave a stunning performance as usual, having chosen a piece by Paganini. Within the waiting room, the atmosphere was getting tenser by the minute. Those who had played were thinking about what they could have (or rather, in their minds, should have) done better, and those who hadn't were getting more and more nervous while waiting.

Kahoko, too, was becoming nervous. While the chances that anyone would try to sabotage her here were low, it had become second nature for her to worry about it. She nervously checked her violin over. Shoko, sitting beside her, had pulled out her sheet music and was regarding it intently, though Kahoko didn't think she was actually seeing any of it. Azuma and Ryoutarou were staring contemplatively on one of the mosaics lining the tops of the walls. Keiichi was of course sleeping. Kazuki alone seemed unaffected, cheerfully making conversation with anyone who would do so.

The cluster of girls in another corner, which they had made clear was theirs, were chattering quietly to each other, evaluating each performance and criticising all of them, even their own.

Across the room, the twins were reacting by being louder and more raucous, stealing Tamaki's lucky bear pencil and mocking him for it. Kyouya became more reserved and reflective, studying intently the pieces that his competition had chosen, and how they were played. Honey-senpai had asked for and received sweets, and was currently compulsively eating them. Haruhi was, of course, unaffected, as she didn't care in the first place.

"He's good," Kyouya commented in a low voice to her, seated beside her and Honey-senpai. "Tsukimori is."

"I guess?" Haruhi ventured. She didn't recognize what he was playing.

"You're good too, Kyouya," Honey said to him, licking his spoon. Somehow, he had polished off four slices of cake, and had not yet spilled a single crumb onto himself.

"I know," he responded, an interested smile hovering in his eyes.

Yasatsune, the shy girl from Lobelia's who played the oboe played next. She was competent, but the loudly voiced opinions from the twins were "Nothing special," earning them glares from the Lobelia team. While Yasatsune Hana was not friends with the White Lily Society, Lobelia students stood for their own.

Fuyuumi Shoko of Seiso Academy was next. Her team members earnestly wished her luck and reassured her that she would do just fine; she looked like she was about to be sick from nervousness. However, on stage her nervousness seemed to disappear, as she gave a very good rendition of Mozart's Clarinet Concerto in A Major. She returned, visibly relieved.

Next was Tsuwabaki, the loud, opinionated girl from St. Lobelia's Academy. She left without a word, an expression of determination on her face. She knew what she had to do, and she was going to do it.

At this point, Haruhi was beginning to get bored, wishing even more that she had thought to bring a book or something with her. Tsuwabaki played well, or so Kyouya said, and she was the tenth contestant. Only eleven more, she thought.

"It's my turn now!" Honey-senpai said as Tsuwabaki's piece came to an end. He picked up his cello and made for the stage. He had chosen a fairly simple piece to play, Dvorak's New World Symphony, and his intention was simply to play it very, very well. It fit his view of the world.

Afterwards, Hino played. Kyouya in particular was very interested in how she would play, being surprised that she played as well as she did. His opinion was that while she would never match up to someone who played their entire lives, she played as if she had been learning violin for perhaps four years. Her piece was Vivaldi's Summer.

The twins, making up contestants thirteen and fourteen, gave an excellent performance, both having chosen very cheerful songs. They both came back immensely relieved and began cheerfully trading insults with the Lobelia team. The Seiso team looked on in something like disbelief.

"What a waste of breath," Shoko murmured quietly. "I don't know why the girls even respond, not all of them have played yet."

"Just don't worry about it," Ryoutarou told her, standing up. It was his turn. "Lobelia and Ouran have always had a stronger rivalry. It's probably why they lost the last few competitions. Wish me luck." He gave them a wave and moved towards the stage.

Tamaki had finally recovered his lucky bear pencil, and plunked himself down beside Haruhi. "Isn't it exciting?" he asked.

"No." Haruhi replied, completely deadpan. "I want to go home." Tamaki ignored her and continued chattering away.

"Tsuchiura was said to be a piano prodigy at the age of ten, did you know? But then he mysteriously stopped playing and disappeared from the music scene! I'm excited to see how he'll play; I wonder, did he just stop playing piano flat out after he disappeared from the music scene, or did he practice for those six years?"

"Tamaki. Shut up." Kyouya told him, not entirely unkindly. "You won't hear him play if you keep talking." And indeed, the first notes of Tsuchiura's piece were filtering through the PA system.

"Rachmaninoff," Tamaki said instantly. "Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor. He's good."

"Whatever you just said, senpai, it's all gibberish to me," Haruhi told him, staring off into space. She was bored. Admittedly, she could try to stop the twins from insulting at the Lobelia team, but they were yelling back, so why bother? It wouldn't have any effect anyway. There were the cakes that had been set out at the request of Honey-senpai, but he was doing a pretty good job of demolishing them all by himself. She sighed, and for once cursed herself for being as meticulous as she was; if she wasn't, maybe she would have left something in the classroom like a textbook or something to do.

Tsuchiura returned, to applause and congratulations from his team. The next musician was also a pianist; Maihara of St. Lobelia's.

"That was well played," she told him kindly. "But not as good as it needed it be." She smiled and exited.

"We'll see," Tsuchiura said to the door, closing behind her.

She played Chopin's Berceuse in D Flat Major, competently, but as Kyouya and Tamaki agreed on, "Not as well as Tsuchiura played Rachmaninoff."

Seventeen, Haruhi thought, as Hihara, the cheerful trumpet-player from Seiso, stood up. Tamaki went to wish him luck. Only five more, including him. His piece was Kreisler, or so Kyouya told her, as he checked his violin one more time.

"My turn," he smiled, eyes narrowed in determination, and moved towards the door as Hihara returned. Tsukimori eyed him cautiously, measuring him up. Noticing this, he gave Tsukimori a mysterious smile and exited.

"Hey, Len-kun," Kahoko said, watching him as he watched Ohtori leave. "What's your preoccupation with him anyway?"

"Just a professional one," he responded, somewhat coolly. "He's said to be one of the top violinists in Japan, but I've never competed with him before now."

Kyouya delivered a stunning performance of Vivaldi's Autumn. Len hadn't changed expression when Kyouya returned, but Kaho knew him well enough to tell that he had been impressed. Of course, he would also say nothing to the boy in question.

"Well played," she told him as he passed. Ohtori smiled.

"You played well too, one can hardly tell that you've only been playing for the past six months," he replied.

She thanked him as he nodded and returned to his circle of friends. The last Lobelia contestant, Shizuma, headed for the stage with her flute. She played well, but as the twins chose to announce in a particularly loud voice, "She's not on our level!" When she returned, Tamaki was already bouncing on his feet.

"Haruhi," he said, a pleading note in his voice. Haruhi glanced at him suspiciously. "Can Daddy have a good luck kiss?"

"No."

Tamaki looked sad enough to almost cry, so Haruhi quickly reminded him that he had to get on stage before he could cause a scene. Recalling the Tamaki signs from the brief time she was on stage, she said, "A lot of the girls are there to see you. They're all cheering for you."

This seemed to cheer him up greatly, and he gave an excellent performance of Grande Valse Brillante. Haruhi sighed with relief as he returned. Only one more, she thought.

Shimizu, the sleepy blonde boy from Seiso, had had the luck to draw last. He meandered towards the stage, and played a Schubert piece. Haruhi was pleased when he had finished and returned, though she was less pleased when she saw that he was being trailed by the Chairman.

"Well played, everyone, well played!" The Chairman announced. "We'll have the results for you in Karuizawa."

"Karuizawa?" Hihara asked. His confused face was mirrored by each of the others.

Seemingly amused, the Chairman continued. "Oh, did I not mention it before? Next week will be the music camp. The Ohtori family," he gestured to Kyouya, giving a small bow, "has kindly volunteered to us their vacation home in Karuizawa. I realize it will be a little chillier this time of year, but I'm sure it will be well-heated. Thus, you are all excused from your classes next Thursday through Tuesday."

"What if we'd rather not go?" Haruhi asked, alarmed. She would miss about a week of school, and that would be a pain to catch up on.

"Oh, you have to go," the Chairman replied. "You won't know your results from today otherwise, and the next theme will be announced there as well."

"Yes, but," Haruhi hesitated. "What if we don't care about that?"

"You have to go, Haruhi," the Chairman told her firmly, but kindly. "It's mandatory."

Haruhi sighed, resigned, as he continued to give them details about Karuizawa.

Fin

Notes: The next chapter should (hopefully) be written and posted in late December or early January. I'm slow at writing TT. Also, I didn't get any reviews for Chapter 3, I was very depressed about that . . . Reviews and constructive criticism are much loved! I'm not going to say something like "I won't post the next chapter until I have x number of reviews for the last one!" because I think that's lame and unconstructive and err, aren't I supposed to be writing because I want to? But if I don't get any feedback, I don't know how I'm doing. . . TT My whole gist of that was "Please leave a review, it makes me happy, and if you find any errors, please point it out to me!" And if there are any scenes in Karuizawa you want to see, you can suggest them and if you're very very lucky, I might include them. . .


	5. Revelations

**Title:** Crescendo  
**Chapter:** 5  
**Pairing(s):** None  
**Rating:** T for safety  
**Genre:** Humour/Crossover  
**Warning(s):** AU; Crosses over with Kiniro no Corda  
**Summary:** [AU, Ouran High School x Kiniro No Corda Ouran Academy was always known as a good music school, so what happens when they face off against Seiso Academy and St. Lobelia's Institute for first place in the triennual music competition[CH5 Music Camp in Karuizawa begins with some revelations.  
**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran High School Host Club, Kiniro no Corda, Skip Beat! or any other anime that may or may not be mentioned.  
**Thank Yous:**Sailor Melina, as usual, for being the ONLY beta-reader to go over it in a week's time. Thank you for making it suck less!

Chapter Five: Revelations

"I can't believe the Chairman didn't tell us where he posted the standings!" Kaho blurted out, breathless, as she collapsed to the ground by the grand staircase marking the lobby of the Ohtori vacation home. She wasn't athletic by any means, and all the running had tired her out. "_Whoever finds the list first knows the scores first?_" she mimicked. "And how many rooms does this house have anyway?"

"We've seen fifteen bedrooms, ten music practice rooms, a common room, a kitchen, a dining room, a formal dining room . . ." Shoko recited all the rooms they had seen so far. "Do you count the terrace? That makes thirty, not including bathrooms." She seated herself more gracefully beside her senior. "And the Chairman said it would be a fun way to get us familiar with the house and each other, right?"

Kaho sighed, pulling herself into a sitting position. "I know, I know," she said. "It's just, we've been at it an hour, and no one's found _anything._"

"What are you two doing?" Len snapped, spotting them as he flew down the stairs. "I checked all the upstairs bathrooms and triple-checked the terrace. We haven't found that list yet, so we don't have time to relax! I'm going to the formal dining room; you guys check the bedrooms again!" He dashed across the lobby, wrenched open a small side door, and disappeared.

Kaho moaned, dropping her head into her hands. "And I think the worst part of this is _him_." After the Chairman had announced that he had posted the results of the last competition somewhere in the vacation home, and they would have to work together to find it on their own, the gathered students had quickly split into their respective schools and loyalties. Tsukimori had quickly taken leadership of the Seiso team, telling them all rather forcefully that if Ouran or Lobelia found the list first, they would _never_ find out the scores. Kaho thought that he was overreacting.

Shoko laughed. "Who knew Tsukimori-senpai had such leadership qualities?" She pulled her friend to her feet. "We'll go to the bedrooms and look around again. We don't want to be caught lazing by Tsukimori-senpai again."

Kaho agreed. After having caught Keiichi napping in the dining room, he had given the first year a sharp smack with a rolled up music score. "Who knew Len was so _violent?_" she corrected Shoko, slowly making her way up the stairs. "He overreacts way too much. Especially over music."

Shoko giggled. "You know you love it," she said, as they entered one of the bedrooms in the north wing.

"Oh, hey," A short girl with long blonde curls said, brushing by them, towing a brunette behind her. She paused as they entered the room. "There's nothing here, but you may as well check, because we might have missed it. Say, either of you want to explain why your leader is going ballistic?"

"He just really, really wants to find out how he did in the last competition," Shoko ventured shyly.

"He's worried that if you or the Ouran students find it first, you won't tell us where it is or something," Kaho added, her voice layered in scepticism.

The girl snorted. "Well, if you find it, tell us, okay? We'll tell you if we find it. I'm Arisa Kimihiro, this is Hana Yasatsune. We'll see you later," she nodded and disappeared, towing the quiet brunette behind her.

"I kind of feel bad for them," Shoko said softly after the Lobelia pair entered another room. "They're working with only six team members today. They're at a disadvantage."

"Where's their seventh member?" Kaho absentmindedly threw all the pillows off the cavernous bed. Maybe it was posted on the headboard? No suck (such) luck. She moved on to the next bed, throwing the pillows back on haphazardly.

"I heard that she got special permission to arrive tomorrow morning." Shoko entered the attached bedroom, checking the shower. "No one is saying why, though."

Kaho sighed and moved on to the dresser. "Well, it doesn't really matter. Help me move this dresser back, maybe they tacked it on behind the mirror here."

Meanwhile, Haruhi and the other Host Club members were tearing apart the recreation room. She didn't really understand why it hadn't occurred to anyone that they would probably find the list faster if they split up and looked for it. She also didn't really understand why it was necessary for her to be dressed as a hippopotamus for this event.

"Haruhi!" Tamaki's voice came out of the games closet. "Check under the pool table! Maybe they posted it on the underside of it!" Haruhi shook her head before complying. Oh yes. That was why she was dressed as a hippopotamus. Upon hearing the words "scavenger hunt," the Host Club King had declared that the Host Club _had_ to have costumes for the event, and thus both the Seiso and Lobelia teams had a half hour head start, while Haruhi found herself being stuffed into a hippo costume. On the bright side, she thought, as she glanced upwards while under the table, they managed to force Kyouya into a snake costume. He was, rather predictably, making notes on a clipboard rather than helping with the search. Then again, she wouldn't put it past him to already know where the list was.

Nothing. Haruhi shook her head and crawled out from under the table. "It's not there, Tamaki-senpai," she called in the general direction of the games closet. The blond boy bounced out of the closet, dressed in the green safari wear. Of course, the safari theme _would_ force everyone except him to be dressed as animals, she mused inwardly.

"Off to the formal--" Tamaki was cut off by two pillows smacking him in the face. The twins, dressed as parakeets, had been ripping apart one of the couches.

"There's nothing here, Tono," Hikaru said, his voice bored. "Everyone's already checked these rooms."

"Tama-chan, Tama-chan, let's search the basement!" Honey-senpai, a little lion for the hunt, dashed out from behind a bookshelf, where he and Mori (an antelope, for some bizarre reason) had evidently been checking. "I bet no one's been in the basement yet!"

"Basement it is!" The twins, delighted with an excuse to take Tamaki into somewhere dark and frightening, grabbed their lord's arms and began frogmarching him to the stairs.

"I FOUND IT!" A loud yell, audible through at least most of the house, echoed from the direction of the kitchen. "KITCHEN PANTRY, ON THE INSIDE OF THE DOOR!"

"Oh." The twins looked disappointed. "Looks like we don't get to go into the basement after all." At the exact same moment, they dropped Tamaki and headed for the kitchen pantry, followed closely by Kyouya, Honey-senpai and Mori-senpai.

"Come on, senpai," Haruhi said, pulling the second-year to his feet. "You want to check the scores, don't you?"

Upon reaching the kitchen pantry, Haruhi saw that the standings were, indeed, posted on the inside of the pantry door, which was currently propped open by a petite, blonde girl. Amusingly enough, she saw that the list was several inches above the girl's head. A small crowd of Lobelia and Seiso students were already clustered around it.

"Did you really need to yell about having found it?" Tsuwabaki, the opinionated brunette from Lobelia, was scolding her. "You couldn't have taken it down and found the rest of us to show it to?"

"I'm four foot ten. I can't even read the list, let alone take it down," the blonde defended herself casually. "Sorry."

"Oi, contrabass girl," Hikaru had managed to shove himself to the front. "You got eleventh. Kaoru, you placed eighth."

"Thanks," the girl replied, choosing that moment to attempt to make her escape from the crowd.

"Second," Kyouya murmured, impressed. He had angled his glasses in such a way as to be able to read the list from a distance. Haruhi raised an eyebrow; she had thought that Kyouya would never settle for second, but maybe this competition was a bigger deal than she'd realized. "You scored last, Haruhi."

"I knew these would come in handy!" Tamaki was beside himself, digging through the 'safari pack' that he had insisted was a vital part of his costume. He brandished a pair of binoculars, scanning the list "Third! Kyouya, you got second! And Kaoru got eighth and Hikaru got twelfth and Honey got fourteenth and Mori got sixteenth and Haruhi got twenty-first! Mom, we have such a talented family!"

Haruhi didn't see the point of telling Tamaki that there were only twenty-one competitors in the first place.

Kaho stared, in awe, at the spread of food in the formal dining hall. She had seen a similar spread of food at the opening dinner party before the first competition, but she had assumed it was just a special thing. Did these people _really_ have meals served by servants and fancy food like this _every day?_

"Try the duck," Azuma pointed out, seated on her right. "It's especially well done. After all," he lowered his voice to a whisper," it's your reward for coming in _third last_."

Kaho winced. The memory still smarted; to her surprise, she had placed ahead of Hana, the really shy first-year from Lobelia's. She felt bad for the poor girl, especially after hearing the White Lily Society tear the girl apart over it. Arisa had mentioned to them that she had felt really nervous and missed notes because of it, but had backed off when they started in on her too.

Really, Seiso was in the lead anyway, so Kaho didn't understand why he was picking on her. Other than just to pick on her, of course. But Len had placed first, as she knew he would, and Ryoutarou had placed a very respectable fourth. Maybe Azuma was disappointed with his own placement of ninth; but Kazuki had placed tenth and he was celebrating. In fact, no one except for her had placed below fifteenth. Kaho sighed inwardly and turned to Shoko, sitting on her left.

"So are we watching Dark Moon tonight?" she asked.

"I hope!" the younger girl's eyes lit up. "Can you _imagine_ Ren Tsuruga on that forty-eight inch widescreen TV in the recreation room?"

"Oh god," Kaho squealed, dramatically fanning herself. "Wow. That would be so_hot_."

"And Itsumi Momose . . ." Kazuki broke in, sitting on the other side of Shoko, a faraway look in his eyes. "On a forty-eight inch TV . . ."

"Personally, I like Mio," Arisa mentioned, across the table, pausing in her rapid intake of food. Kaho was impressed at how much the petite girl had managed to consume in only a few minutes. "Her actress, Kyoko, is really new in the entertainment industry, but she acts really well. Ohtori-kun?"

The dark-haired boy raised his head from the conversation he had been conducting with the other Ouran students. "Yes, Kimihiro-san?"

"Does the TV in the rec room have cable?"

"Of course."

"Great!" Arisa turned back to Kaho and Shoko easily. "Then Dark Moon in the rec room at ten pm." She looked down the table, evaluating the other students, and then shrugged. "Hey! Dark Moon in the rec room, ten pm!" she called out. She proceeded to inhale her food.

At the other end of the table, Haruhi shook her head. She was surprised that such a small girl had such a loud voice. She was also surprised at the amount of food that she was consuming. Where did all that air come from, and where was she putting all that food? "What's this Dark Moon, anyway?"

Tamaki stared at her, horrified.

Haruhi immediately wished she had kept her mouth shut.

"Haruhi!" he sobbed, throwing himself on her. "You're too poor to afford a TV!"

"No, I'm not!" she snapped, trying to escape from his grip. He'd been over at her apartment before, hadn't he seen the TV in the corner? "I just don't watch TV very often!" With effort, she shoved the host club king back into his own seat.

"Dark Moon is the remake of an old drama from twenty years ago – Tsukigomori," Kaoru informed her, laughing. "It's starring Ren Tsuruga and Itsumi Momose. You should go watch it tonight. And try the Peking Duck, it's done particularly well."

In the recreation room that night, Haruhi noticed that about half of the competitors had shown up to watch Dark Moon. Tamaki and the twins had opted to come as well. One of the couches was already occupied by Hino, Fuyuumi and the short blonde girl from Lobelia's; another was taken by two Seiso boys.

"But Hana said that she wanted to practice, because she placed second last, and Hinako, Chizuru and Benio think that intense love dramas are misogynistic, and so of course Kimiko said the same thing," the girl was saying, "So I guess I'm the only one from Lobelia's that showed. Hey, Fujioka-san, Hitachiin-san, Hitachiin-san, Suoh-san."

Haruhi quietly took a seat on the third couch, the twins choosing to sit beside her as Tamaki returned the greeting cheerfully and joined the two Seiso boys. Hihara and Tsuchiura, right? "Who's the blonde girl?" she asked Kaoru quietly. "Hikaru called her something earlier, didn't he?"

"Arisa Kimihiro," he replied, amused, as the opening credits for Dark Moon began to roll. "Plays contrabass; the instrument is twice her size."

The drama wasn't quite a horrendous as Haruhi had feared; though she thought the plot was rather clichéd and simple when Tamaki had ranted and raved about it to her, the acting carried it off quite well. The only thing that was truly horrendous about the whole thing was actually Tamaki and the girls, shrieking at all the appropriate moments. Haruhi supposed, however, that it was a good thing, as the character Mio was supposed to evoke that reaction from the viewers.

"She's brilliant!" Kimihiro breathed at the end. "Did you _see_ that scene with the knife and Mizuki? Switch it over to Japonet Scoop, do you mind? There's an interview I want to see."

Tsuchiura, apparently in control of the remote, flicked over to the desired channel before offering his opinion. "The scenes were really well done," he agreed. "I didn't expect a love drama to be quite so captivating."

"And the way that Mio becomes more and more soulless as the plot progresses! Her actress portrayed that so clearly in the last scene!" Tamaki raved. "It makes me scared of her . . ."

"Don't be silly, Tono," the twins chorused immediately, devil's smiles appearing on their faces. "We're sure she's very nice in real life. Or at least," they looked at each other. "Nicer than us."

"Actually, I heard that Kyoko, the actress for Mio, was actually the angel in the Sho Fuwa PV for Prisoner, and she was in that Curara ad too," Hihara added. "I looked her up on the internet."

"I thought you had a thing for Itsumi Momose," Hino threw in, amused. "The girl who plays Mizuki, not Mio."

"I do," Kazuki grinned. "But I have a healthy appreciation of Mio too."

"Shh!" Kimihiro interrupted suddenly. "The interview is starting. Mika's in it!"

"Mika?" Tsuchiura frowned. "Isn't she your team member who didn't show up today?"

Kimihiro nodded, focused on the TV. Haruhi, looking over to the TV, saw that they were conducting an interview.

"_So how do you feel about your first single__ Ephemere__ not only making the Oricon, but giving Fuwa's last single a good battle for first?" the interviewer asked of the band. The keyboardist, a dark-haired boy with bangs that flopped in his eyes, sat in the centre, clearly the spokesperson for the group. Sitting at his left was the vocalist and only female of the group, with long black hair held back by a red ribbon. On his right sat the guitarist, a rough-looking youth with a dragon tattooed on his arm. Left of the vocalist sat the bassist, a tall, dignified boy with long hair. Right of the guitarist sat the drummer, a lean youth with his ears pierced multiple times._

"_Well," the keyboardist replied, "It was really unexpected. Technically, Ephemere isn't Eternal Night's first single, just our first single with our new vocalist. Overall though, I'd say we're feeling pretty good." A boyish grin spread across his face._

"Mika's the vocalist," Kimihiro said, motioning to the girl with long black hair on the screen. "She's not actually trained in French horn," she explained to the other shocked competitors. "She's trained as an opera singer, but last year she auditioned for a role in Carmen at the Tokyo Metropolitan Opera, and she actually got it. After the performance, a talent agency signed her on right away, and then like a week later, Eternal Night picked her as their new vocalist." Her voice echoed the pride she felt in her friend. "The French horn was kind of a fairy thing."

Haruhi laughed. She understood what Kimihiro meant by 'a fairy thing.'

"Makes sense," Tsuchiura said calmly. "Lobelia's fairy is known to pick people who already have musical training anyway. A second-year who was already a top opera singer and making a bid in the entertainment world would be a prime candidate for being your school fairy's chosen."

"_So tell us about your new CD," the interviewer asked, curious._

"_Well," the keyboardist continued, "it's a concept CD telling the story of a vampire who falls madly in love with a human girl, and what results because of it." _

"_Thank you so much for the interview!" The interviewer turned back to the camera. "We're just about out of time, so here is a sneak peak at the PV for Ephemere."_

"Ephemere," Tamaki said, oddly thoughtful. "Short-lived. Temporary."

"Appropriate, then?" Haruhi asked, rising. "I think I'm going to go to bed; where are we sleeping?"

"They posted the roommates and room number lists at the head of the grand staircase in the lobby," Kaoru replied with a smile.

"Another attempt for us all to become happy and friendly," Hikaru added, smirking. Haruhi sighed inwardly, feeling sorry for whoever ended up with him. She wasn't sure if the twins had ever spent a night apart.

"I'll go check it then," she said, rising.

"We'll come too," Hino added, pulling Fuyuumi to her feet. "I'm tired."

At the head of the stairs, Haruhi scanned the sheet. "Hino-san, you're sharing with Tsuwabaki, first room on the left, west wing." She pointed out the name and room address on the sheet as Hino looked over her shoulder.

"Shoko, you're sharing with Hana, next door to me," the redhead smiled at her.

"Errr, Fujioka-san," Fuyuumi asked, her voice surprised as it was curious. "Why is your name listed on the girl's sheet?" Her finger pointed out that Haruhi would be sharing a room with Kimihiro, first door on the right.

Fin

**Author's Notes:**I'm not entirely sure when (or if) this piece will finish, because I've lost a lot of enthusiasm for it, though seeing as I have the entire plot planned out and all I have to do is write it, I really may as well write it. . .

Anyone who doesn't like that I threw in an OC, here's my reasoning: I have no 'link' between the Ouran and Seiso students and the Lobelia students. Ouran and Seiso students don't have anything against each other, plus certain characters for both schools are friendly enough that they'll just click (example, Hihara and Tamaki), but the Lobelia students don't, so I made one to provide more interaction overall for the Lobelia students, which becomes important later in the plotline. Arisa's character is mainly inspired by the Sakura character in Nodame Cantabile, but because she's the one interacting with both other schools, her predominant trait is being easygoing and friendly.

Really, at this point, the plot's just getting started. Fangirls, stalkers and riots here we go . . .!

As always, please review! Feedback will be awesome.


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